Senior Systems Development Engineer, Amazon Dedicated Cloud (ADC)

Amazon is hiring a Senior Systems Development Engineer, Amazon Dedicated Cloud (ADC) in Arlington, United States. It pays $151k-$205k a year and Level rates it ; you can apply on Level.

AI in this role

Application deadline: Applications will be accepted on an ongoing basis

Would you like to implement innovative cloud computing solutions and solve the world's most complex technical problems? Do you have a deep passion and desire to engineer and operate the world's largest cloud computing infrastructure to build a better world for future generations?

This is an exciting opportunity to use the latest cloud computing technologies to help U.S. Government agencies implement innovative cloud computing solutions and solve technical problems.

AWS established a specialized group of service teams responsible for the work we are doing with the U.S. Intelligence Community. We are building some of the largest and most complex distributed systems in the world, and we need adaptable people to help us implement and operate them.

The Amazon Dedicated Cloud (ADC) Networking team is seeking highly motivated engineers who are focused on operational excellence, troubleshooting complex system operations, have a good understanding of Linux, networking, and general knowledge of cloud services. We're also looking for engineers who can use their software knowledge to automate the way we manage and scale our services. We need engineers who understand how to think big, and simplify solutions to complex problems; all the while ensuring that our customers continue to have the best experience possible.

You will be able to take a defined project, break down the work to help define milestones and feedback mechanisms. You identify when implementations are not highly available or have defects; you investigate systemic patterns. You resolve, mitigate, or escalate operational concerns in a timely manner.

The candidate selected must obtain and maintain a security clearance at the TS/SCI with polygraph level. Upon start, the selected candidate will be sponsored for a commensurate clearance for each government agency for which they perform AWS work.

Key job responsibilities
You'll own the software services and platforms that keep the AWS network running within the region — and you'll lead the engineering effort to continuously reinvent them to be more resilient, more automated, and more scalable.

Your dual mandate — operational excellence today and engineering innovation for tomorrow — means no two weeks look the same. You'll own the health and reliability of critical network software systems, responding to operational events with the calm precision of someone who understands the architecture end-to-end. But you won't stop at firefighting. You'll identify patterns in operational burden and engineer them away, building automation that transforms manual runbooks into self-healing workflows.

Your engineering work spans the full lifecycle of complex distributed systems. You'll lead the design and implementation of solutions that reduce operational toil at scale, develop automation that minimizes human intervention, and collaborate with global service teams to enhance stability and functionality. You'll design and implement entirely new software components, products, and services that improve operational efficiency on behalf of your network engineer customers.

When technical issues arise, you'll lead the investigation — diagnosing at the code or systems level, performing root cause analysis, implementing long-term fixes, and articulating technical requirements back to service owners with clarity and precision. When incidents arise, you'll lead with clarity and purpose. When the dust settles, you'll lead the retrospective that ensures the same issue never surfaces again.

You'll mentor fellow engineers, guiding them through operational deep-dives and passing on the craft of systems thinking. You'll contribute to architectural decisions that shape the programme's future, champion best practices that raise the bar for the entire team, and build the relationships with global service teams that ensure successful deployments and effective problem resolution.

You will:

- Lead projects to disambiguate and solve challenging distributed systems problems on a global scale.
- Develop best in class software systems for automating Amazon's network.
- Be responsible for the design, implementation, and quality of services you deliver.
- Learn, design, and build cloud-computing systems for a diverse set of customers and contribute to documentation of process and procedures.
- Use and develop tools and processes that collect & rationalize data from different sources and frameworks to reduce workloads.
- Use data to measure success and take responsibility for the quality of your service and, regardless of their source; Strive to prevent faults from impacting your customers.
- Be a leader on an agile team, independently drive challenging projects and milestones to completion.
- Work closely with our Network Engineering teams to ensure fast and smooth software roll-outs and design and recommend optimization for service delivery and fleets.

A day in the life
You will be a technical leader on a team that shapes the automation future in networking. You will lead development of new key services and partner with stakeholders across the organization to improve networking security and availability posture in ADC Regions. You will play a leading role by interacting with customers, gathering requirements, then influencing how we design, develop, build, deploy, and support new features and functionality.

You will collaborate with Senior Engineers with deep knowledge in network architecture. You will have the opportunity expand your horizons, mentoring engineers across the organization and expanding your influence as a technical leader. With an open-minded team such as ours, you will have an eager-to-learn unit of peers with whom you get to grow mutually.

About the team
AWS Amazon Dedicated Cloud Networking owns datacenter network services that provide unconstrained connectivity to dedicated US Government customers. They own the networks end to end, including scaling, design, and operational functions.

Why AWS?
Amazon Web Services (AWS) is the world’s most comprehensive and broadly adopted cloud platform. We pioneered cloud computing and never stopped innovating — that’s why customers from the most successful startups to Global 500 companies trust our robust suite of products and services to power their businesses.

AWS Infrastructure Services (AIS)
AWS Infrastructure Services owns the design, planning, delivery, and operation of all AWS global infrastructure. In other words, we’re the people who keep the cloud running. We support all AWS data centers and all of the servers, storage, networking, power, and cooling equipment that ensure our customers have continual access to the innovation they rely on. We work on the most challenging problems, with thousands of variables impacting the supply chain — and we’re looking for talented people who want to help.

Inclusive Team Culture
Here at AWS, it’s in our nature to learn and be curious. Our employee-led affinity groups foster a culture of inclusion that empower us to be proud of our differences. Ongoing events and learning experiences, including our Conversations on Race and Ethnicity (CORE) and AmazeCon conferences, inspire us to never stop embracing our uniqueness.

Work/Life Balance
We value work-life harmony. Achieving success at work should never come at the expense of sacrifices at home, which is why we strive for flexibility as part of our working culture. When we feel supported in the workplace and at home, there’s nothing we can’t achieve in the cloud.

Mentorship and Career Growth
We’re continuously raising our performance bar as we strive to become Earth’s Best Employer. That’s why you’ll find endless knowledge-sharing, mentorship and other career-advancing resources here to help you develop into a better-rounded professional.

Diverse Experiences
Amazon values diverse experiences. Even if you do not meet all of the preferred qualifications and skills listed in the job description, we encourage candidates to apply. If your career is just starting, hasn’t followed a traditional path, or includes alternative experiences, don’t let it stop you from applying.

Basic qualifications

- Bachelor's degree, or CSSLP (Certified Secure Software Lifecycle Professional)
- 6+ years of deploying and operating in a Linux/Unix environment experience
- 6+ years of systems development in an IT or data center environment experience
- 3+ years of systems design, software development, operations, automation, and process improvement experience
- 6+ years of programming with at least one modern language such as C++, C#, Java, Python, Golang, PowerShell, Ruby experience
- Experience leading the design, automation, deployment, and support of large-scale infrastructure

Preferred qualifications

- Experience with distributed systems at scale
- Experience in mentoring, leading, or managing more junior engineers
- Experience with CI/CD pipelines build processes
- Experience in networking, storage systems, operating systems and hands-on systems engineering
- Experience building tools for building, testing, releasing or monitoring

Amazon is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of protected veteran status, disability, or other legally protected status.

Our inclusive culture empowers Amazonians to deliver the best results for our customers. If you have a disability and need a workplace accommodation or adjustment during the application and hiring process, including support for the interview or onboarding process, please visit https://amazon.jobs/content/en/how-we-hire/accommodations for more information. If the country/region you’re applying in isn’t listed, please contact your Recruiting Partner.

The base salary range for this position is listed below. Your Amazon package will include sign-on payments and restricted stock units (RSUs). Final compensation will be determined based on factors including experience, qualifications, and location. Amazon also offers comprehensive benefits including health insurance (medical, dental, vision, prescription, Basic Life & AD&D insurance and option for Supplemental life plans, EAP, Mental Health Support, Medical Advice Line, Flexible Spending Accounts, Adoption and Surrogacy Reimbursement coverage), 401(k) matching, paid time off, and parental leave. Learn more about our benefits at https://amazon.jobs/en/benefits.

USA, CO, Denver - 151,200.00 - 204,600.00 USD annually
USA, VA, Arlington - 151,200.00 - 204,600.00 USD annually
USA, VA, Herndon - 151,200.00 - 204,600.00 USD annually

How we rate this

Senior Systems Development Engineer, Amazon Dedicated Cloud (ADC) at Amazon rates 35 out of 100 for how much of the daily work is AI. That makes it Little AI (AI Level 1 of 4). The level is about AI in the job, not seniority.

Classification

Little AI. AI is not part of the work.

●●●● Builds AI80 to 100
●●●○ Works on AI60 to 79
●●○○ Uses AI40 to 59
●○○○ Little AI0 to 39

Levels come from how often the tools, models and workflows of the role are named in the posting itself. Open the description and count.

Key facts

Senior Systems Development Engineer, Amazon Dedicated Cloud (ADC) is an open job at Amazon.
Level rates this role AI Level 1 of 4: Little AI.
The listed salary is $151k-$205k a year.
The role is based in US, VA, Arlington.
The job was posted on October 15, 2026.
Seniority: senior.
Applications are handled by Amazon. Apply on Amazon